POLITICIAN

William the Silent

1533 - 1584

Photo of William the Silent

Icon of person William the Silent

William the Silent or William the Taciturn (Dutch: Willem de Zwijger; 24 April 1533 – 10 July 1584), more commonly known in the Netherlands as William of Orange (Dutch: Willem van Oranje), was the leader of the Dutch revolt against the Spanish Habsburgs that set off the Eighty Years' War (1568–1648) and resulted in the formal independence of the United Provinces in 1648. Born into the House of Nassau, he became Prince of Orange in 1544 and is thereby the founder of the Orange-Nassau branch and the ancestor of the monarchy of the Netherlands. In the Netherlands, he is also known as Father of the Fatherland (Latin: Pater Patriae; Dutch: Vader des Vaderlands). A wealthy nobleman, William originally served the Habsburgs as a member of the court of Margaret of Parma, governor of the Spanish Netherlands. Read more on Wikipedia

His biography is available in different languages on Wikipedia. William the Silent is the 415th most popular politician (down from 372nd in 2019), the 114th most popular biography from Germany (down from 102nd in 2019) and the 31st most popular German Politician.

William the Silent is most famous for being the Prince of Orange and leading the Dutch revolt against Spain.

Memorability Metrics

Loading...

Page views of William the Silent by language

Loading...

Among POLITICIANS

Among politicians, William the Silent ranks 415 out of 19,576. Before him are Charles VIII of France, Alexander I of Yugoslavia, Croesus, Francis II of France, Sheikh Hasina, and Elizabeth of Russia. After him are Galba, Leopold II of Belgium, Woodrow Wilson, Charles VI of France, Sergio Mattarella, and Magnus the Good.

Most Popular Politicians in Wikipedia

Go to all Rankings
Load previousLoad previous

Contemporaries

Among people born in 1533, William the Silent ranks 3. Before him are Elizabeth I of England, and Michel de Montaigne. After him are Stephen Báthory, Eric XIV of Sweden, Giacomo della Porta, Ismail II, Alfonso II d'Este, Duke of Ferrara, Andrea Gabrieli, Catherine of Austria, Queen of Poland, Francesco III Gonzaga, Duke of Mantua, and Abdullah Khan II. Among people deceased in 1584, William the Silent ranks 2. Before him is Ivan the Terrible. After him are Charles Borromeo, Francis, Duke of Anjou, Bernal Díaz del Castillo, Yi I, Jan Kochanowski, Balthasar Gérard, Marcantonio Colonna, Mikołaj "the Red" Radziwiłł, Mehmed II Giray, and Eric II, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg.

Others Born in 1533

Go to all Rankings
Load previousLoad previous

Others Deceased in 1584

Go to all Rankings
Load previousLoad previous

In Germany

Among people born in Germany, William the Silent ranks 114 out of 7,253. Before him are Pope Damasus II (1000), Friedrich Paulus (1890), Rudolf I of Germany (1218), William Herschel (1738), Joachim von Ribbentrop (1893), and Gottlieb Daimler (1834). After him are Ernst Haeckel (1834), Nikolaus Otto (1832), Albert Speer (1905), Heinrich Schliemann (1822), Rudolf Christoph Eucken (1846), and Claus von Stauffenberg (1907).

Others born in Germany

Go to all Rankings
Load previousLoad previous

Among POLITICIANS In Germany

Among politicians born in Germany, William the Silent ranks 31. Before him are Klemens von Metternich (1773), Rudolf Höss (1901), Peter III of Russia (1728), Gerhard Schröder (1944), Rudolf I of Germany (1218), and Joachim von Ribbentrop (1893). After him are Frederick William III of Prussia (1770), Erich Honecker (1912), Willy Brandt (1913), Frederick William II of Prussia (1744), Frederick III, German Emperor (1831), and Henry the Fowler (876).

German born Politicians

Go to all Rankings
Load previousLoad previous